NHL
LAS VEGAS (AP) Alex Ovechkin, Braden Holtby and the Washington
Capitals stayed cool in the 100-degree Vegas heat and evened the
Stanley Cup Final.
Holtby made 37 saves, Ovechkin scored a power-play goal and Lars
Eller added a goal and two assists in the Capitals’ 3-2 victory
over the Vegas Golden Knights in Game 2.
The Caps hung on through a scoreless third period for their first
Stanley Cup Final victory in franchise history largely because of a
bounce-back performance by Holtby, who was battered in Vegas’ 6-4
series-opening win. Holtby capped his energetic performance with a
jaw-dropping stick save with 1:59 to play, stretching back to rob
Alex Tuch of a possible tying goal.
Brooks Orpik ended a personal 220-game drought with the eventual
winning goal for the Caps, who rebounded from a ramshackle loss in
the opener and handed the expansion Golden Knights only their
second home defeat – the first in regulation – in Vegas’ nine
postseason games.
James Neal and Shea Theodore scored and Marc-Andre Fleury stopped
23 shots for the upstart Knights.
BASEBALL
OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) – Nathan Eovaldi pitched six innings of no-hit
ball in his return to the majors following a second Tommy John
surgery, leading the Tampa Bay Rays to a 6-0 victory over the
Oakland Athletics.
Eovaldi (1-0) faced one over the minimum through six innings in his
Tampa Bay debut. He threw 70 pitches and had four strikeouts. The
only runner to reach base against him was Matt Chapman, who drew a
one-out walk in the first.
Wilmer Font, acquired by the Rays from the A’s last Friday, gave up
Jed Lowrie’s one-out single in the seventh for Oakland’s only hit
of the game. Vidal Nuno got the last three outs to finish the
one-hitter.
Rob Refsnyder hit a three-run home run off A’s starter Sean Manaea
(5-6), and Johnny Field also homered for the Rays.
The game drew an announced crowd of 6,295, the smallest at the
Coliseum since April 3, 2003.
Eovaldi last pitched in the majors on Aug. 10, 2016, for the
Yankees.
NFL
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Lawyers for the NFL urged a federal judge to
appoint a special investigator to look into what the league said is
extensive fraud in claims on the $1 billion concussion settlement.
NFL attorneys said a study by the independent auditors in the
claims process showed about 440 claims were flagged for denial
based on evidence of fraud by attorneys, doctors or former players.
Lawyers representing the former players and their estates said most
of the opportunity for fraud has been resolved because anyone
filing a claim after the settlement’s effective date has to see a
neuro-specialist from a list of approved certified physicians.
The settlement, which took effect January 2017, resolved thousands
of lawsuits that accused the NFL of hiding what it knew about the
risks of repeated concussions.
It covers retired players who develop Lou Gehrig’s disease,
dementia or other neurological problems believed to be caused by
concussions suffered during their pro careers, with awards as high
as $5 million for the most serious cases.
CLEVELAND (AP) – Browns safety Damarious Randall underestimated two
things: the power of social media and passion of Cleveland fans.
Randall said he never imagined that an innocent Twitter posting
about the NBA Finals would blow up into a national story – and
maybe something he lives to regret.
A big fan of Golden State star guard Stephen Curry, Randall posted
a tweet on Monday night promising that if the Cleveland Cavaliers
beat the Warriors in the ”2018 NBA finals, I’ll buy everyone who
retweet’s this a jersey.”
By Wednesday afternoon, Randall’s tweet had been retweeted 869,000
times.
Randall, who came to the Browns in a March trade from Green Bay,
said he couldn’t track the number of re-tweets because his phone
locked up when he tried to access his Twitter account.
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (AP) – The San Francisco 49ers are easing
linebacker Reuben Foster back into the system after he missed the
start of the offseason program while dealing with a domestic
violence case that was eventually dropped.
Foster was not allowed to participate in the offseason program
until a judge ruled last week that he wouldn’t have to stand trial
on domestic violence charges. The judge determined there was no
evidence that Foster ever hit his ex-girlfriend.
Foster rejoined the Niners last Thursday but has been held out of
team drills as he gets back into form after missing more than five
weeks of the offseason program while waiting for his case to be
resolved.
He took part in individual drills during organized team activities
but spent the time during team drills doing conditioning or
watching teammates.
PITTSBURGH (AP) – The Pittsburgh Steelers are ditching their
”bumble bee” throwback uniforms for something with a more 1970s
feel.
The team announced it will wear replica jerseys of the 1978 and
1979 clubs that won back-to-back Super Bowls when the Steelers host
the Cleveland Browns on Oct. 28. Team president Art Rooney II said
the choice of using the `78-79 jersey was fitting. The franchise
will spend the next two seasons honoring the 40th anniversary of
the teams that pushed Pittsburgh’s Super Bowl total during the
1970s to four.
The move means the Steelers are ending the use of their 1933
throwbacks that featured black-and-gold horizontal stripes that
made the team resemble a pack of bees.
NBA
PHILADELPHIA (AP) – The Philadelphia 76ers said they are
investigating whether team president Bryan Colangelo used a variety
of Twitter accounts to anonymously trash some of his own players
and fellow executives and defend himself against criticism from
fans and the sports media.
The allegations, reported Tuesday by the sports website The Ringer,
raised questions about Colangelo’s future and that of the NBA team
itself, a rising franchise heading into perhaps its most important
summer ever as it tries to attract free agents to contend for
championships.
The five Twitter accounts under suspicion took aim at Philadelphia
players Joel Embiid and Markelle Fultz, former Sixers general
manager Sam Hinkie, Toronto Raptors executive Masai Ujiri and
former Sixers players Jahlil Okafor and Nerlens Noel, according to
The Ringer.
Among other things, the user or users of the accounts complained
that Embiid, the 24-year-old All-Star center, was ”playing like a
toddler having tantrums” and was ”a bit lazy,” ”selfish” and
”acting like a tool.”
